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New kind of animal

09-10-2019, 09:53 AM

Hello everybody,

Just got accepted to the forum so i'm gonna introduce myself.

I am a 27yo IT engineer living in NY for a year and a half now. I was before that in Colorado and before that in France.
Unfortunately that's where the story gets complicated. I am not a citizen yet, only here on a working VISA but i happened to fall in love with your country so i'm in the process to try and become one.

Now regarding my occupation, i need to change, i've been doing it for only 3 years but that was enough for me to realize that it's not what i want to do. Sitting behind a desk 8 hours a day is not fulfilling and totally boring to me.
I've always been wanting to help others and at the same time i have always had a huge respect and been appealed to Law Enforcement/Military Corps(i tried to get into a military medical school before getting my engineering degree but i was too young to make it work by giving the amount of work that was needed i guess). Now, i'm getting older and i know that i don't want to lose any more time waking up every morning for something that i don't like and that is not "me".
Ideally, i would like to become a K-9 handler, and no, unfortunately, i don't have any experience with dog training but i have some time before obtaining my citizenship that i can use to remedy that, so i'm still hopeful and open to any advice or recommendations.

I know my situation is a little bit different from most here, but i'm hoping i'm not the only one and that some of you will be able to shed some light on how to make the dream happen.

Welcome aboard. How close are you to getting your citizenship? There aren't a lot of agencies that will accept you before you get your citizenship but I know if you ask I'm sure someone could point you in the right direction. When you are a citizen, it is up to you on what you specifically want to do. You can be a K9 handler at nearly any level of LE, be it municipal PDs/sheriff offices, state, or federal agencies. There's also plenty of K9 officers, past and present, on the forum to direct questions to. Good luck!

Comment

Citizenship is seldom an issue for most municipal, county, or state positions, although it can be required for many federal hiring opportunities. Legal residency (green card, permanent resident status) will be required for most departments.

If your interest is directed toward K9 work I would suggest that you discuss your future with a US Air Force recruiter. The Air Force has operated the most state-of-the-art training programs for dogs and handlers for many, many years. In addition, a term of service in the US armed forces with honorable discharge will provide you with preference points in most civil service positions you might apply for.

Comment

Well thank you for your answers.
It at least gives me some ideas on where to look. I take it is the same process for LE and for military corps, you have to be a citizen to apply?

Regards

Nope, in fact that's how you can speed the citizenship process up in many cases. My buddy got his citrizenship through a certain amount of service in the Army. You can always call and ask a recruiter. I'd definitely follow retired1995's advice and look at the Air Force if K9's are where you want to go.